As reported by The Montclair Times, the Montclair Police Department's existing radio system has experienced hundreds of cases of interference with a Connecticut television station since 2009.

Township Manager Marc Dashield has told The Times that Montclair will convert to a state-run radio system. In a Nov. 18 report to the municipal government, consultant V-Comm Telecommunications Engineering proposed a $690,969 system migration. The proposal included $104,000 in proposed savings from Motorola should Montclair agree to a contract with a vendor prior to the New Year.

During the Dec. 30 Township Council meeting, Jeff Jacobson of the Capital Finance Committee suggested that the Township Council request Motorola to extend its discount.

The bulk of the proposed system migration budget is tied to user equipment: nearly $540,000. User equipment would include 117 portable radios, 44 mobile radios, a two-year service warranty, batteries capable of enduring 11-hour shifts, and accessories such as microphones, holsters, and chargers.

Not included in the migration budget is a $286,000 "dispatch" budget, which would include three consoles, three "consolettes" and a two-year service warranty.

The report indicates that, as the required radios are new, finding cheaper, refurbished models would not be possible. The report also recommends Motorola as the vendor, citing the company's experience with the necessary radios. Though a competing vendor, Tait, had not provided interoperability tests to the state or V-Comm at the time of the report, the recommendation states that using Tait equipment would shave $100,000 off of the proposed budget.

During the Dec. 30 Township Council meeting, Dashield told The Times that, as Montclair did not have the funds in hand to finance the new equipment in full, $130,000 had been earmarked to purchase Motorola and Tait handheld radios to get the process started. Dashield said that he was confident that Tait radios would be compatible with the rest of to-be-purchased equipment.

After using both Motorola and Tait, municipal officials will determine which brand to move forward with when making the remaining purchases.

Speaking to The Times on Monday, Police Chief David Sabagh said that he was excited by the impending purchase of a new radio system. The chief said that, after reviewing the report, he had no issues with it and that he believed it would be a good approach.

How the township will move forward in implementing the new system will become clearer tomorrow, Friday, Sabagh said, following a meeting he will hold with Dashield.